Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Indianola, Mississippi

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Indianola is a city in Sunflower County, Mississippi, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta on U.S. Highway 82 between Greenwood and Greenville, not far from the famous Crossroads at Clarksdale. It serves as the county seat of Sunflower County. The town prides itself on being home to the B.B. King Museum and the Delta Interpretive Center. It was originally named Indian Bayou, for the stream on which it was built. Between 1882 and 1884, the town's name was changed from Indian Bayou to Eureka, then to Belengate, and finally to Indianola. In 1889, the completion of the Georgia Pacific Railroad ushered in a new era for the town, attracting several Jewish residents that established a thriving Jewish community that would remain for much of the 20th century.

Late 19th Century Jewish life: Jews moving to Indianola were beckoned by advertisements like these in the Sunflower Tocsin: “Time to come to this rich Delta country and buy just forty acres, and in less than ten years, the milk and honey comes.” Early Jewish businesses often were nothing more than shotgun houses with porches on the front. In 1896, a fire destroyed the business section, but the town quickly rebuilt itself. Jewish businesses included: The New York Store (founded by Max Ginsberg), Frieds (founded by Ben Fried in 1913), and Hytkens, a ladies dress shop (founded by Aaron M. Hytken). Several Jewish families settled in nearby Moorhead at the turn of the century and opened businesses. The Heimelsteins, originally from Germany, arrived in 1917, buying land and opening a store, and the Klumoks and the Diamonds were later additions to the group of merchants.

Jewish life in Indianola: For several years, the Indianola Jewish community hoped to build their own temple. It was reported in the Indianola Enterprise on April 15, 1915 that a Jewish congregation was organized and met at the Baptist Church for a sermon by Rabbi M. Samfield. Later sessions were held at the Masonic Hall. D. Cohn was president, D. Kaplan was vice-president, and Joe Zachariah was secretary-treasurer of the fifteen-member association. M. Cohn, Ben Fried, Hattie Frehling, and Mrs. Abe Weinberg were teachers for the Sunday school, which drew children from a wide area. Plans to build a temple were given up when their savings for the purposes were lost in a bank failure during the Depression. Indianola also established their own B’nai B’rith Lodge on February 1, 1918. The charter members were D. Cohn, D. Kaplan, J. Levingston, Max Loto, D. Hytkin, S.H. Brownstein, L. Cohn, P. Scotlans, A. Fuhrer, J. Orlansky, Charles Cohn, H. Pinsky, H. Orlansky, J. Sabin, L. Silverblatt, M. Barnett, J. Ross, Abe Weinberg, Ben Fried, Sam Cohn, and Allen Cohn. A second attempt at organized Jewish life after the Great Depression. Congregation Beth El was organized on January 21st, 1940, under the direction of Rabbi Newton J. Friedman from Cleveland, Ohio. The first services were held in the Masonic Hall on a Sunday afternoon, and regular services began being held twice monthly. The 40 family congregation upgraded their location in April 1940 to the American Legion Hut. The diverse congregation hailed from Indianola, Moorehead, Isola, Belzoni, Inverness, and Sunflower. The congregation was never able to build a permanent home, and members sometimes attended services in nearby Greenwood and Greenville.

The Lewis family: a financial success story:

As the 20th century progressed, Indianola Jews continued to thrive economically. One of the most prominent businesses in Indianola was the Lewis Grocer Company, which distributed groceries to the four surrounding states. The company was started by one of the most prominent local Jews, Morris Lewis Sr., who arrived in the United States from Poland at age 13 in 1873. Lewis’s story is a saga of success that was typical of early America. He came to the U.S. at the age of 13, accompanied only by his 11-year-old brother, Myer. The two boys lived with relatives in New York while learning to speak English. Upon arrival in New York, Lewis worked diligently as an office boy and shoe shine boy, and learned English as he worked. In 1870, he left New York and went to Mississippi, where he met his wife, Julia Herrman. Lewis clerked in a store in Sidon for $24.00 per month, accumulating a savings of $500 from this meager salary. Forming a partnership with Sam Herrman of Lexington, he invested his money in a small store that grew into the Lewis Grocer Company enterprise with stores in Lexington, Durant, and Indianola. Though his home was always in Lexington, Indianola consistently served the home of Lewis’s commercial endeavors. Over the course of the 20th century, his company became wildly successful. Three stores were consolidated into one in Indianola, and in 1957, a huge plant with a warehouse of 100,000 square feet, complete with cold-storage facilities, was opened. Retail and affiliate stores were later added. Morris’s brother Lewis helped to organize the Deposit Guaranty National Bank in Jackson, becoming its executive vice-president. As Morris and Julia Lewis began their family, the Lewis Grocer Company grew to become cooperatively run by Morris Lewis, his nephew Leroy Paris, and his sons Celian and Morris Lewis, Jr. Lewis’s nephew and sons were essential to the everyday operation of the business, assisting in sales and management. Lewis, Jr. was a member of the Lexington high school band and member of the football team. Morris Lewis, Jr. graduated from high school in 1928, and left to study at the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania. Upon his return to Mississippi to work with his father’s business, he found that the company’s success was hampered by large chains, and wanted to begin a “voluntary chain” in order to serve their independent store operators. Though their plans were postponed by both Celian and Morris Lewis, Jr. enlisting in World War II, they finally succeeded in opening Sunflower Food Stores in Philadelphia, Mississippi. After working to overcome initial financial losses from this venture, they eventually succeeded, and opened more than 58 franchised Sunflower Food Stores. After the Lewis Grocer Company merged with SuperValu, Inc., Lewis served as chairman of the board and moved to Minneapolis. Because of his love for Mississippi, Lewis commuted from Minneapolis to Indianola each week via his private jet. His wife, Freda, always accompanied him. After returning home to Mississippi, he served as president of the National Wholesale Grocers Association and chairman of the Delta Council and the Mississippi Economic Council. In 1973, he was awarded the Herbert Hoover Award in recognition of his achievement in the area of food distribution.

Other Jewish merchants in Sunflower County: Charles Cohn, who lived in nearby Inverness, eventually became the sole owner of the Cohn Store. While living in Inverness, he became an important social and civic leader and a successful businessman. In 1908, Mr. Cohn built a large brick building on East Grand Avenue to house his growing general store business. Through the years, Mr. Cohn served as a member of the Board of Aldermen for Inverness, and served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Inverness and also as president of the Bank of Inverness. Iaac and Lena Harris opened their store here in 1910. Their daughter, Ethel married Abe Weinberg, who had opened his store in 1909. When his store closed in 1997, it served as the oldest continuous, same-family owned business in Indianola. E. Weinberg’s store, located at 115 ½ Front Street served as as a men’s haberdashery, and gradually expanded to sell items for women and children as well. Despite being run by a Jewish family, E. Weinberg’s Store remained open on Saturday late into the night, due to the nature of the Indianola market. Maurine Lipnick (originally Maurine Weinberg), remembers how everyone from the surrounding area would come into town on Saturday to shop, and they would have to lock the doors at midnight to shut down for the night. Abe Weinberg also helped to start the People's Bank of Indianola.

The Weinberg, Lipnick and Silverblat families: four generations of success!

In 1947, Maurine Weinberg married Melvin Lipnick in Hebrew Union Temple of Greenville, and after years of working under Maurine’s parents, she and Lipnick took over the store. Melvin Lipnick was from Inverness and his family, Jake and Isabell Lipnick had a store there for many years. Their courtship began when they reunited at a friend’s wedding after Mr. Lipnick had returned from his service in World War II. His service included stationing in Oahu, Hawaii, Germany and Austria. His strongest memories of the war are from his experience liberating the concentration camp of Dachau. For his service, he received two Bronze Star medals. After years of working under Maurine’s parents, they took over the store. Under the Lipnick's leadership, the types of merchandise offered at the store shifted, and they began to specialize in children’s attire. They recalled the major changes in children’s clothing styles over the years, and remember that although their store used to sell mostly formal wear for children, by the end they did not have a single suit. Many of the events in American history transformed the store, and the owners remember selling shoes with wooden soles during WWII rationing, and having their business threatened by the new local Wal-Mart. They remember living through a fire, which destroyed their store in 1932, and the Great Depression, when all the Indianola banks closed. The Lipnicks made friends in both the black and white communities. The Lipnick’s daughter, Leanne remembered them always employing black high school girls who worked in the store, boasting that it was sort of right of passage in the community to see if you’d be selected to work there. The store was greatly respected in the larger community because they went at great lengths to ensure that you didn’t sell the same dress to two girls who went to the same church or high school. The Lipnick's community participation was not confined to the store. Mrs. Lipnick taught math, Latin and coached basketball at the Indianola Academy. She also helped the school by becoming the bookkeeper and secretary, as well as serving on the board of trustees. Even after closing the E. Weinberg Store, she continued teaching Latin. The couple raised two daughters, Leann and Marilyn, both of whom have carried on the family profession and work in retail. Leann married Alan Silverblatt and moved to Dallas where Alan worked for Texas Instruments. The couple moved back to Indianola to carry on the family tradition and currently run a clothing store called Young Ideas in 1973. Together these families have continuously in retail in Indianola for over 100 years, as Leann and Alan are 4th generation.

An inspiring tale: from merchant to mayor: Current Indianola Mayor Steve Rosenthal’s family came to the Delta from Eastern Europe at the turn of the last century. His grandfather, Ben Fried, ended up in New Orleans, where he lived for a year before moving to Port Gibson, where he opened a tailor shop for a year. He opened a store in Indianola in 1913. It progressed from an independent tailor to a full-fledged department store for men, women, and children. Steve Rosenthal attended Indianola schools and graduated from the University of Memphis. Like most Delta Jews, his ancestors established a dry goods store, which Mr. Rosenthal owned and operated for years. Steve moved away, but when his dad could no longer operate the family store, he moved back to Indianola. His two children moved back to Indianola after college as well, which helps further motivate him to do good work as mayor. Steve initiated the Indianola Promise Community (IPC), a community-based initiative to provide children with the opportunity to succeed in school, graduate, and attend college. It was modeled after Harlem’s Children Zone, and they are having a positive impact on the community. Steve is one of several Indianola residents doing everything they can to keep this region alive and well for future generations. New industry is coming into Indianola, bringing more people and resources for a progressive future. Though small in number, the Jews of Indianola remain proud of a remarkable Jewish legacy.

Lewis, Morris Jr., Wholesaler-retailer: the story of the Lewis Grocer Company and Sunflower Food Stores, 1975. (New York : Newcomen Society in North America, 1975)Berman, Robert Lewis, A House of David in the Land of Jesus (Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2009).